BOSTON, Mass. – Simmons Tennis came from behind to defeat Mount Holyoke College 5-4 at The Winsor School courts Friday evening, giving the Sharks their first win of the 2011 season.

Mount Holyoke College led 2-1 after the doubles matches. The Lyons increased their lead to 3-1 after AnnElizabeth Konkel (Camp Hill, Pa.) defeated Simmons sophomore Rachel Sweeney (Norfolk, Mass.). Margaret Teague (Manchester, N.H.) was victorious at the #1 Singles position defeating Nahrhee Han (Albertson, N.J.), narrowing the deficit to 3-2. Junior Sabrina Salmela's (Beverly, Mass.) win at #2 Singles tied the match at three. Mount Holyoke took the lead again with Sarah Moore's (Plano, Texas) win but Andree Sime (Bradenton, Fla.) battled in her match to even the score 4-4.

The match came down to Sharks freshman Nicole Eskenazi (Goleta, Calif.) and Lyons sophomore Eman Malik (Karachi, Pakistan). After spliting the first two sets, play was even throughout the 3rd set, forcing a tiebreaker. Malik was one point away from victory at 6-5 when Eskenazi hit a forehand winner down the line. She followed that with two more points, winning the tiebreaker 8-6, and delivering the win for the Sharks.

"Nicole's win will be one that we'll remember for a long time. One point away from a team defeat and she went for her shot without hesitation. She continues to play fearless tennis" said Coach Rauseo.

The Sharks host Saint Joseph's College (Conn.) tomorrow in GNAC conference play at 12:00 p.m. The Lyons host NEWMAC rival Wellesley College tomorrow at 1:00 p.m.